Scientific American March 1997 [antikvár]

FROM THE EDITORS MORE ORDERLY INTERNET may be a lot less fun but also a lot more useful. Civilizing the Internet Conan the Librarian"? No, that doesn't fit the profile. Librarians are mousy, bespectacled fussbudgets, as faintly musty as the books they curate, at least in the popular stereotype. They certainly aren't the sort who should be trying to conquer a bold new frontier. For that job, one wants fearlessly independent explorers and tough, two-fisted cowboys in the John Wayne mold, fair but quick on the draw. You can count on them to tame badlands and carve out a safe niche for the simple, civilized townsfolk. Cowboys, in the persons of hackers, crackers and other members of the plugged-in elite, have been among the most colorful occupants of cyberspace ever since people other than researchers and defense wonks began roaming the Internet. With the invention of e-mail, and later of the World Wide Web, the value of networked communications on a global scale became clear and attractive to masses of humanity. Many of the Net's early denizens, however, who love the terrain's wild beauties, are not happy to see the throngs of newcomers arriving in their Winnebagos. They correctly see the encroachment of civilization as spelling the end of their fun. True, the crazy profusion of new Web sites on every possible topic has only added to the wonderful clutter. But whole industries are now getting ported to the Net. Kids use it to do homework. People rely on it for their jobs. And so at some point, the Internet has to stop looking like the world's largest rummage sale. For taming this particular frontier, the right people are Hbrarians, not cowboys. Tlie Internet is made of information, and nobody knows more about how to order information than librarians, who have been pondering that problem for thousands of years. Associate editor Gary Stix has assembled a lineup of experts who, beginning on page 41, suggest some of the ways in which technology can rein in the chaos. Shortly before this issue went to press, we received the sad news of the death of Carl Sagan. I don't think there can be a writer or reader of prose about science who does not feel his passing as a personal loss. For those of us who had the opportunity to work with him, the pain is all the sharper. In person, on camera and through the page, he was an inspiration. We offer a fuller appreciation of the man on our Web site (http://www. sciam.com/explorations/). Good-bye, Carl; we miss you already. JOHN RENNIE, Editor in Chief [email protected]